Sustainable Polymers from Biomass: Strategies, Challenges, and Future Perspectives

Dear Colleagues,

The global shift towards sustainability is driving a surge in the development of eco-friendly polymers, with vegetable oils emerging as a versatile and renewable platform for fully bio-based materials. Oils such as soybean, linseed, castor, sunflower, and others offer abundant feedstocks that, through tailored chemical modifications and advanced polymerisation techniques, can be transformed into high-performance thermoplastics, thermosets, elastomers, and composite matrices.

These materials offer notable environmental advantages—including biodegradability, a lower carbon footprint, and compatibility with circular economy principles—making them increasingly relevant in packaging, coatings, biomedical devices, automotive components, and construction applications. However, challenges persist in enhancing scalability, mechanical robustness, long-term durability, and cost-effectiveness to meet industrial demands.

This Special Issue aims at providing a cross-disciplinary forum for cutting-edge research and critical reviews in the design, synthesis, processing, application, and life cycle analysis of polymers entirely or partially derived from vegetable oils. We welcome original research articles and comprehensive reviews that explore experimental, theoretical, or applied dimensions of this rapidly evolving field.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Innovative functionalisation methods and polymerisation strategies;
• Advances in mechanical, thermal, or barrier properties tailored for specific applications;
• Developments in green catalysis, additive manufacturing, and dynamic covalent systems;
• Hybrid materials and nanocomposites incorporating vegetable oil-based polymers;
• Life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic analysis for sustainable scale-up;
• Standards, policy frameworks, and best practices guiding commercialisation.

We look forward to your contributions and to showcasing the latest progress in making vegetable oil-derived polymers a cornerstone of sustainable materials science.

Dr. Ian Major
Dr. Pavan Paraskar
Dr. Amin Abbasi
Guest Editors

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